Ace Attorney

Episodes 1-3

When a studio adapts a new franchise, especially a beloved one like CAPCOM's Ace Attorney series of video games, there are a lot of decisions they can make to either stay true to or diverge from the original work. Of course, every degree that they differ from the game comes at a risk of alienating a reliable existing fanbase. Ace Attorney the anime isn't taking any chances. The show is as close to the game as you can get, sacrificing any originality in order to placate game fans. The result is a show with ho hum production values that takes few if any risks.

In the first three episodes, Ace Attorney has been a very literal translation of the game into an anime format. It features all the same characters, down to their same expressions, hand gestures, and verbal quirks. It has the same catchy chiptune themes. People in the courtroom appear to be physically blown away by powerful evidence, as if by a strong wind. One major highlight is Crunchyroll's decision to run two English subtitle tracks, one with the original Japanese names, and one with the English translations from the games brought to North America, where Ryuichi Naruhodo is now Phoenix Wright, and Mayoi/Maya's favorite food is now burgers, not ramen. If you're watching the show in lieu of replaying the games (and so far I don't see any other reason to watch it), you'll love this. In order to turn it on, right click on the screen and choose “English (US) Alt Track.”

The story from the games is still strong. Completely unchanged, here are our beloved game characters, from rookie attorney Phoenix Wright and cheerful companion Maya Fey, to masterful lawyer Miles Edgeworth and his goofy lackey Dick Gumshoe—plus a colorful cast of witnesses and suspects in-between. They do battle in a ridiculous courtroom routine so removed from reality that lawyers are constantly screaming “Objection” with the force of a gale, and Phoenix gathers most of his evidence by simply stealing it from crime scenes and putting it in his pocket. The situation is so bizarre that by episode three, Phoenix finds himself getting arrested in the very case that he's the defense attorney for, a turn of events that will be familiar to fans of the game but totally unfathomable for new viewers.

Even so, the strongest thing this show can do is stick to what works. The minor diversions they've taken so far have turned out cheesy and false-ringing. When Marvin Grossberg exposits on Redd White's seedy information gathering company, Bluecorp, the building is shown as a backdrop to a butterfly ensnared in a spiderweb. When Phoenix arrives at Maya's cell sopping wet and sprinkled with cherry blossoms, it's too on-the-nose to his efforts and the newness of their alliance. And don't get me started on the dramatics of the intro, which show Phoenix and Miles chained together by the wrist in a very overt metaphor of their adversarial search for the truth. The flat visuals, awkward CGI, and questionable in-betweens have not escaped fans' notice, but at least the content matches the original games.

If you've played the Ace Attorney games like I have, you will love the chance to relive their uniquely tense and bizarre courtroom dramatics. The story and music we love are still intact. If not, there's hardly anything in this middle-of-the-road anime to ensnare new fans.

Rating: C+

Ace Attorney is currently streaming on Crunchyroll.

Lauren writes about anime and journalism at Otaku Journalist.